Having worshipped at God's feet for the best part of twenty-five years, Father Hendrie should know better - nightmares are only a fabrication of an over-active imagination. But the dreams which haunt him are terrifyingly vivid and all are somehow li...
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"He is meddling again!" Enlil, Prince of Nibiru, growled. Apart from the sound of his armour creaking as he paced back and forth, there was only the echo of his rasping voice in the vast throne room. Infuriated about another breach of security, he'd demanded an audience with his father. He intended to persuade the King that the advance on Earth should be a priority following his discovery about Marduk.
When the King didn't respond, Enlil stopped before the throne. His eyes, dark, filled with rage, imploring his father for the order. "He was seen in the city - three times now," he argued.
King Anu sat, his face as expressive as a slab of granite. "You worry needlessly, Enlil."
Astounded at his father's response, the Prince stopped dead in his tracks. "Needlessly? Do you honestly think Marduk sneaking around is nothing to be concerned about? The very fact he can return here is worrying enough!"
"Marduk chose to reign over Mars, not Earth," Anu said, matter-of-factly.
"How can you be so naive, father?"
Enlil had gone a step too far. King Anu stood, abrupt, his stature demanding deference. "Be careful with your words, Enlil."
The Prince knelt. With his right fist pressed firmly against his heart, he offered his obeisance. "Sorry, father."
The King inhaled, slow, his nostrils flaring as he breathed. "Mars still bears fruit; silver, gold, hafnium, iridium and platinum, to name but a few. These are resources critical to Nibiru, and with our engineering, Marduk has dutifully been importing them for aeons. So, of course, he comes home periodically."
Enlil bit back his frustration and stood once more to face the King. "Sire, I heard rumours..."
"Rumours!" King Anu's voice ricocheted off the walls and pillars within the room. Even the elaborate tapestries which dressed the walls seemed to ripple from his plangent outburst. Enlil flinched. "You dare to come to me spouting rumours?"
Easing his bruised ego, the Prince rose to his full height. "I was trying to explain, father," he said between gritted teeth. "Based on what I heard, I ordered some diagnostics to be run. The portal residue from his caligae denotes he came from Earth, not Mars. Rumours may be one thing, Sire, but our instruments do not lie."
A heavy silence followed. King Anu retook his throne, his brow furrowed with a look of agitation and simmering anger in his eyes. He stroked his plaited beard, a habit he'd developed when deep in thought. Eventually, he looked at his youngest son. "I want you to find out what he's up to."
"He's in league with the Fallen; I feel it in my gut!"
The King's mouth thinned to a tight line. "Perhaps. But I have no tolerance for rumours or hunches. We have the means to be certain. See to it."
The Prince bowed before his father. "As you wish, Sire. And the advance on Earth? Am I to understand this is now taking precedence?"
"Our planet's trajectory will remain on course; once we are in position, our ships will launch."
